Join me daily as I blog about life in upstate New York,photography, flowers, gardening, travel, caregiving, a brother in law with autism, the importance of chocolate in a well lived life, or anything else on my mind.

Saturday, January 23, 2010

Autism then vs now Part 1 of several

The world my brother in law grew up in influenced a lot of his life, as it does for us all. It also influenced the choices that were made for him - both in childhood and adulthood. And even shaped his personality and how he behaves now. This, remember, was a world without early intervention, without ABA, without special education programs.

A few posts ago, I talked about my Dad's life with Diabetes back in the 60's. Some of that is my love of history but I think we need to step back into the past when it comes to autism, also. In order to understand the present you have to study the past. And the fact of the matter is, attitudes of people to those with "disabilities" were way different back then. Then, autism was hidden. Then, it was something to be ashamed of, or at worst, diagnosed as a mental illness. There was little help. The mother was blamed, as my mother in law was.

Some would say "why dwell in the past?" Well, I don't intend to dwell there. But what I and my spouses' side of the family is dealing with is something that resulted from those choices, with those opportunities (or lack of). So please keep in mind, when I talk about my brother in law and my feelings, that he did not grow up in the world of today. If you want to judge please hold off judgement for now.

Rather, I hope that my experiences and his will help others now walking in our shoes.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Hello! I welcome comments, as long as they are civil, are on topic, and do not contain profanity, advertising of any kind or spam. Any messages not meeting these criteria will immediately be composted, and my flowers will enjoy their contents.

Ultimate Blog Challenge October 2017

Write Tribe Problogger Challenge Oct 2017

Sharing is Caring!

About Me

From the housing projects of New York City to rural Arkansas to upstate New York, I've traveled a long and winding road. Learning more daily about writing, photography, and the importance of chocolate in a well-lived life.